The Killer and the Genius
by Drizzt1138
Summary: Spartans Soren-66 and Olympia Vale are assigned to a very important target; Jul 'Mdama's brother. Based on an alternate version of the story "Pariah" from the "Halo: Evolutions" anthology. Rated K for violence.


The Killer and the Genius

A Halo fanfic

En route to unnamed planet designated JX3-550

1121 hours UNSC Standard Time, 9/14/2552

Soren-66 looked down at his scout-class SPARTAN-II helmet. It was mottled with faint brown and grey tones, so that it would allow him to blend in to most environments he would end up working in. Not that he had ever had trouble blending in, physically or socially. Back in training, he had always been the man in the middle, neither the greatest nor the least.

It seemed as though it had been ages since the procedure that had forever changed his body, giving him the unbelievable strength and speed to match his natural skills that he had cultivated in the forest relative eons ago. Yet for all that, he hadn't been able to do his job. He had been unable to save Reach, not for any lack of skill or ability, but merely because it had been an impossible task. It seemed as though nothing could stand against the power of the Covenant.

And yet he was still trying. He looked up at the briefing screen at the back end of the Pelican. It gave him a clear and concise summary of the details of his mission. He quickly looked over the data on the environments, the supplies at his disposal, and the targets he would be monitoring. ONI had seemed fairly concerned about this one, but not enough to send any of their own top agents. Yet again, Soren was the middle ground.

The target was a small grouping of Covenant forces lead by a shrewd, pragmatic Elite named Khal 'Mdama. They hadn't been causing much trouble for the UNSC, but that was part of what was so worrying about them. The other part of it was that they were getting steadily closer to Earth. Their path had been erratic enough to convince the top brass that it was just a coincidence. Still, it was worrying enough that they were bound to send someone to check it out.

Within a few minutes they were within the planet's atmosphere and at a steady cruising altitude above the surface. They were still a few day's hike away from the Covenant position, far enough that they wouldn't be seen on the flyby, but still at a reasonable walking distance for a Spartan. Soren inched towards opening at the end of the Pelican. Once they were close enough to the ground, he fell backwards out of the dropship.

Despite the fact that he had done several insertions this way, it still gave him a rush of adrenaline to feel himself falling. Despite the protective shell of the armor he wore, there was still the instinctive reaction to the possibility of being smashed against the ground. And yet for him it was not fear, merely a thrill. He had noted early on in basic training that he had no real fear of heights.

He hit the ground after a few exhilarating seconds, his armor taking most of the impact. He looked up and watched the Pelican receding into the distance. He knew it would be his last contact with humanity for a few days, if not more. Still, although he didn't necessarily like being alone, he was used to it.

Once the Pelican had flown out of sight, he turned and started the long march towards the Covenant camp. It would have been difficult terrain for anyone else. The ground was wet and soft, with pits of mud that had collected, just waiting to grab someone's foot and never relinquish its hold on them. In the few places where there weren't mud pits, there had sprouted large trees with low-hanging branches that constantly had to be pushed out of the way. Thankfully for Soren, not only was he a Spartan, he was also naturally suited to the environment.

As he walked, he immediately started picking up details about his surroundings. He noticed the tracks in the dirt, could tell how heavy the creatures that made them had been, how long ago they had passed. He was able to use them to avoid the mud pits around him; wherever the animals did not dare to tread, he avoided, and thus avoiding sinking into the sludge. He also took note of the kinds of foliage around him, watching to see which kinds would give him shelter and which would not.

He only had to stop once, and that was for a very brief rest after the first day. By the second day, he had already reached the Covenant encampment. He set up a small camp of his own, just a bed of leaves to lay on, really, and began to wait. Based on what he gathered from several days of watching, the Covenant forces still had no idea where Earth was, despite their proximity to the planet. It ended up being one of the least exciting scouting missions he went on. But in retrospect, it ended up leading to so much more.

Aboard the UNSC _Infinity_

1138 hours UNSC Standard Time, 10/15/2557

Soren rode the elevator up to the briefing room, helmet in his hands. It was no longer a scout helmet; since the new Mjolnir armors had come out, he had switched to the Rogue armor variant. It was his first time on the _Infinity_ , due to the fact that since it had been put into service he had been on mission after mission in other systems. Now he was going up to see Spartan Palmer to receive his next assignment.

The elevator doors opened, and he saw Captain Lasky and Spartan Palmer standing in the center of the room, along with another Spartan who had short brown hair and bright red armor. He did a quick salute, and the others saluted in return.

"At ease, Spartans," said Captain Lasky. "Soren-66, I would like to introduce you to Spartans Sarah Palmer and Olympia Vale. Vale is going to be accompanying you on this mission." He reached over and shook her hand. She smiled and looked him straight in the eye, and he couldn't help but smile back.

Spartan Palmer motioned toward the screen. "Vale is our consult on Sangheili culture for this mission. The target is someone you may be familiar with, Soren: Khal 'Mdama. He's the brother of Jul 'Mdama, one of the UNSC's most-wanted targets. He's been located on a small Covenant vessel in an asteroid field nearby. Now Vale, you're sure that by taking out one brother, we can get to the other?"

The woman nodded. "Familial ties are fairly strong in Sangheili culture. It won't be much, but it's still an advantage we can push. Plus it's one more group of offshoots that we wouldn't have to worry about."

Palmer nodded back. "Alright then. Her job will be psychological tactics; getting inside the head of the enemy. Soren, you're going to be the one who pilots the Broadsword that will take you there. Other than that, you have no standing orders other than to make sure the target is eliminated. You may do whatever you need to, as long as Khal 'Mdama isn't breathing at the end of the day. Understood?" He and Vale saluted in affirmation and, once they were dismissed, headed back to the elevator.

* * *

The two Spartans were getting ready for departure within the hour. They were gearing up outside the Broadsword when Vale's curiosity got the better of her. "Why do you carry a DMR and a shotgun? Seems like a bit… much."

Soren looked up from prepping his weapon. "I like to be able to hit things wherever they are, at long range or close up. That, and I would rather be carrying more weight than be underprepared," he stated simply. "Why do you carry a plasma pistol? In fact, where did you even get a plasma pistol?"

Vale looked down at her sidearm. "It's partly a cultural thing. I tend to feel at home with Covenant and Forerunner tech because I know so much about the two groups. As for where I got it? It's not hard to find them on the battlefield. I sometimes pick them up for ONI, but they have enough samples that sometimes they just let me keep the leftovers."

He shrugged, taking it as enough of an answer. They said nothing more as they boarded the Broadsword. It wasn't a cold silence; neither of them were avoiding the other in any way. It was more of a professional silence; neither of them said anything because there was nothing more to be said. Soren, at least, was used to not talking to people for long periods of time.

En route to Khal 'Mdama's position

1319 hours UNSC Standard Time, 10/15/2557

Soon they were in range to make the jump to their target's position. Vale put the Broadsword on autopilot and made her way to where Soren was waiting for her. "You ready?" She asked. He simply nodded in response. Seeing this, she lowered the entry ramp to the ship and they jumped out together.

For anyone but a Spartan, this would have been nigh suicidal. But they had the skills and the gear to survive it. As they floated away from the Broadsword, they activated the boosters on their armor, propelling them forward. Soon a Covenant ship came into sight, the one that Khal 'Mdama was reportedly on.

As they got closer, their presence was detected. The Covenant ship's auto-turrets began firing on them, purple bolts of light streaking through the eternal night of space. They quickly fired their lateral boosters, pushing them out of the line of fire.

Within seconds they had reached the ship. Soren placed a detonator on the hull, and motioned for Vale to get clear. As she did, he pressed the button on the trigger, and there was a concussive pulse of energy that blew off part of the enemy ship. They rushed through before the breach could be sealed, and they were in.

Vale ran straight into the fray, SMG ablaze. Grunts fell all around her, but there were a few targets that were harder to take down. Two Jackals moved towards her, side by side with energy shields raised. They fired plasma bolts at her, and on the HUD inside her helmet she watched her shield slowly start to drop. Before it was completely depleted, she hid behind a pillar, waiting for it to recharge. As she did, they moved towards her position, still side by side. Just as they reached her, she leapt out from behind the pillar, throwing a plasma grenade towards one of them. It hit the alien right in the head, and as she sprinted away it blew both of them to pieces.

Meanwhile, Soren moved along the edge of the room, trying to find the quickest route to their target. As he did, however, he noticed an Elite moving towards Vale's position. Before it could reach her, he fired off a few shots with his DMR, taking down its shields. The Elite turned towards him then, firing shots of it's own at him. He ducked out of the way, and as he did Vale managed to tackle the Elite from behind, taking advantage of the distraction he had created. Before the Elite could even react, she had a knife in its throat and it was down for the count.

By this time Soren already had Khal 'Mdama in his sights. The Elite was brandishing an energy sword, and was already moving to join in the fight. Soren pulled the trigger on his DMR, and 'Mdama's shields flickered slightly. The alien turned towards the Spartan and, without hesitation, charged. Soren calmly continued to fire upon his target as it moved closer and closer, and soon there was an energy sword slashing straight down towards him.

Vale saw 'Mdama charging towards her fellow Spartan and pulled the trigger on her SMG. Unfortunately, nothing happened; she had run out of ammo. The Elite was almost to Soren when she pulled out her Magnum and locked her sights on him. She fired off several shots, and was satisfied to see her target crumple to the ground- until she noticed that Soren had fallen as well.

She sprinted over to him, finding him sprawled out on the ground underneath the very large corpse of Khal 'Mdama. She threw the corpse aside and started a med-scan, attempting to revive him. Fortunately, as soon as the med-scan started, she realized it was unnecessary; the scan revealed that he was still alive, but unconscious.

A few minutes later, Soren finally came to. Vale helped him to his feet, and he nodded silently in thanks. From there, they made their way back to the Broadsword, which was still on autopilot, waiting for them nearby. "You did good out there," Vale said as she primed the engines.

"So did you," Soren replied simply. That was all they said. That was all they had to say. Once they were back on the _Infinity_ they were assigned to new teams. They would not be seeing each other again. But they would not forget.


End file.
